Distance Runners Top Valley Entries in Sunkist Meet : Prep track: Canyon’s Hartman to test stellar field in boys’ mile. Drossin, Rothman and Barajas face national leader in girls’ race.

Dave Hartman of Canyon High, Deena Drossin of Agoura, Jeannie Rothman of Westlake and Veronica Barajas of Channel Islands, each an All-American during the 1990 cross-country season, will begin this year’s track and field season in the Sunkist Invitational at the Sports Arena tonight.

Hartman, who finished third in the Kinney national cross-country championships in San Diego last month, will compete in what is being billed as the boys’ national high school mile championship.

Louie Quintana of Arroyo Grande, the Kinney cross-country champion and the fastest returning miler (converted time of 4 minutes 8.65 seconds) in the country, heads a field with an international flavor.

Ibrahim Aden from Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy and Jama Bile of Georgetown Prep (Md.) both hail from Somalia, and Ben Mesfen of Venice is a native of Ethiopia.

Ricky Gallegos of Crystal City, Tex., who finished seventh in the Kinney championships, also is in the field.

“I haven’t really set any goals based on time,” Hartman said. “I just want to run a good, competitive race. I don’t want to get out there and have these guys embarrass me.”

Although Hartman has run the mile infrequently in major invitationals, he figures that he is in shape to run faster than 4:20.

“It’s early in the season, but I think I’m capable of running that fast,” Hartman said. “Obviously, my speed isn’t as good as it will be later in the year, but I have a very good base. I’m very strong.”

Like Hartman, Drossin, Rothman and Barajas also will drop down from their preferred distance of 3,200 meters to run in the girls’ mile.

Drossin, a three-time state Division I cross-country champion and the sixth-place finisher in the Kinney nationals, has the fastest mile time of the three, but her best of 4:56.44 (converted from a 1,600-meter time) pales in comparison to the nation-leading 4:50.23 of favorite Sarah Schwald of Rogers High (Spokane, Wash.).

Schwald led the nation in the 1,500 meters (4:26.33), mile and 3,000 meters (9:22.57) last year and was ranked first in the 3,000 and third in the 1,500 in Track & Field News magazine’s national rankings.

Marion Jones of Rio Mesa, Jeff Wilson of Newbury Park and Jorge Barajas of Fillmore also will compete in the meet.

Jones, who won the 100 and 200 meters in the 1990 state championships as a freshman, will attempt to successfully defend her title in the 50-meter dash. She also will help the Spartans defend their title in the 4 x 160-yard relay.

Wilson, the 1990 state Division III cross-country champion, will run in the boys’ rated mile, and Jorge Barajas will compete in the two mile.

Chris Perry of Cal State Northridge and former Notre Dame High standout Tom Parker will compete in the open portion of the meet.

Perry, the 1990 NCAA Division II champion in the long jump, has entered that event.

Parker, who is expected to compete for Cal State Northridge this spring after earning his Associate of Arts degree from Valley College, is entered in the pole vault.

The meet will begin at 4:15 with the boys’ pole vault.